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Mkhululi Ncube, Chronicle Reporter

POLICE in Bulawayo have issued an apology to members of the public after they erected a sign post at Magwegwe Police Station with a wrong spelling which has since been corrected.

 Messages started circulating yesterday morning on social media after members of the public took a picture showing Magwegwe written as Magwegewe .

 Bulawayo Provincial spokesperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele said the wrong spelling was a “genuine mistake” and a correction has been made.

 “Police in Bulawayowould like to advise members of the public that the spelling error which resulted in the name of Magwegwe Police station being misspelt has since been rectified. This was a genuine error by one of our trusted local businessman who willingly volunteered to print a banner for the police,” she said.

 Ass Insp Msebele said the banner was immediately pulled down after the mistake was discovered.

 “The error was discovered during the erection of the banner and immediately removed and corrected. Some members of the public had already taken some pictures and circulated them. We sincerely apologize for an inconvenience caused and we would like to appreciate our local business people for the continuous support,” she said.

 A number of companies and some government departments have in the past come under fire from Bulawayo residents for misspelling isiNdebele words.

 In 2014, fast food outlet Chicken Slice had a wall advert at the company’s outlet at the corner of 9th Avenue and Fort Street with the words “Umkwenyana uqobo uyabuya le Chicken Slice”, which should have read “Umkhwenyana oqotho uza le Chicken Slice.”

In 2017 Premier Optometry Services (POS) was caught up in an isiNdebele spelling and grammar boob storm after it wrote a meaningless notice in the language. The company’s notice read: “ukhubema akuvunyezwa lapha . . . ucingo akuvunyezwa lapha. . .  ukudla akuvunyezwa lapha” instead of “ukubhema akuvunyelwa lapha (smoking is prohibited here) . . . ucingo aluvunyelwa lapha (use of cellphones prohibited) . . . ukudla akuvunyelwa lapha (Eating is not allowed).”

@themkhust